Science
There are almost 5,800 rock glaciers in Austria – more than half of them in Tyrol. A rock glacier is a mixture of rubble, water and ice that slowly slides over a mountain slope. Research is currently being carried out into how they function as water reservoirs.
Unlike normal glaciers, rock glaciers do not appear in brilliant white, but represent a landform in the permafrost that is hidden under large blocks from the hiker’s eye.
Springs at the foot of the glacier
In the course of an inventory, it was found that drinking water supply systems are relatively often linked to these landscape forms, explained hydrogeologist Gerfried Winkler from Graz: “The characteristic of these rock glaciers is that very often heavily pouring springs emerge at the foot of the rock glaciers. Some of these springs are already being used to supply drinking water – for example in Nauders or on the Turracherhöhe.
Could meet drinking water needs
However, the drinking water supply is mostly tied to rock glaciers that are no longer active. These are the ones that don’t move anymore. It is now being investigated how the rock glaciers function as water reservoirs and what their share in the water cycle is.
It is assumed that the approximately 5,800 rock glaciers release enough water within a year to cover the drinking water needs of the whole of Austria. According to Winkler, however, this is only part of the storage that the rock glacier makes available: “The other part is the ice that is bound in the active rock glacier. These volumes are multiples of that.”
Better protected than normal glaciers
In Tyrol, rock glaciers spread out over a total area of 167 square kilometers. Due to the protective layer of debris, they are not as affected by climate change as glaciers. Research is also currently being carried out into how their drainage systems work and how these water reservoirs will behave in the future. The first results should be available as early as next year.